To sack the cleaner?

If the cleaner thought there was too much stuff sitting around, as someone suggested, why would she think it was a good idea to start unpacking things?

If she had any problem with what she was asked to do she should have discussed it in a sensible way.

Glad you've decided to sack her, ruby.

This woman is taking advantage of your kind nature, if it makes you feel any better offer to give her a reference, all you need to write is to state that she was honest and reliable. Good luck.

There are cleaning agencies who send round cleaners who work in the nude ( I think they bring chaperones with them) not sure what the hourly rate is!

I am so sorry for being so blunt rubylady, but this cleaner of yours has really got to go.
To take 'photos of 'before and after' cleaning and then telling you to keep it clean is beyond belief and quite frankly an odd thing to do.
She sounds like a control freak and I truly suspect that she will get worse the more chances that you give her. She will try to take over completely.
Definitely report her if she is with SS or an Agency.
If she is a private cleaner, then get rid of her asap.
Something is not right.
Good luck.?

Or a very pleasing on the eye good swimmer

My daughter in laws mother was cleaning for a retired hospital consultant for 3 years or so. He had an indoor swimming pool and told her she was welcome to use the pool on the condition that she did not wear any costume just nude. She often took him up on his offer. He has died and left her £450,000 in his will, so I assume she was a very good cleaner.

Rosemary55- look under acronyms at the top.

AIBU means Am I being unreasonable.

Personally, I would LOVE a cleaner/gardner/cook.chauffeur, but on a UK state pension that must be ME .....sadly ! I try to keep the place clean, but it doesn't seem to be as clean as my French neighbours ...I think they must spend all day cleaning as their houses are immaculate ! bah humbug ! I hate heavy cleaning, as in moving beds, furniture, etc and turning the mattress and putting on a new divan thing, which means lifting the mattress up ! I am not a domestic goddess, and I really WISH I could afford one !

Mind you, my dad, when he was 80, was told by social services he needed a cleaner, which he had to pay for, as he had sold the family home and moved into a retirement flat ....he kept her for about a month, then got rid of her, and when I asked him why he said 'She moves things' !!!! I said that's what she's here for ....so that you don't have last weeks' breakfast egg cups still on the table, or a months worth of newspapers on every chair ....... He refused to have another cleaner and refused to let me or anyone else move anything ! When he died, we found he had hidden the meals on wheels in the fridge and gone to Woolworths or the pub for his lunch (not a catered retirement flat) .....the neighbours told me he always looked smart (he did) ...because I found thirteen, yes, 13, of those zip up clothes bags with worn once or twice clothing in, whilst he bought new every week ! bless him ...it was his money, and up to him how he spent it .....he enjoyed his life as it was and that's all that mattered !

I've always had a cleaner until I retired. Some stayed years others lasted a few weeks. YOU ARE THE BOSS! SACK HER!

Ruby,i ran my own cleaning business and would never have been like that with anyone, she is taking the mick. If you cant do it face to face do it by text and if it makes you feel better pay her for what would have been her next visit (i wouldnt), ask a friend to be there if you dont want to do it by text. YOU DESERVE BETTER.

Poor you, and what a cheeck that rude woman taking photos in your house, and telling you what to do, taking over in YOUR home, get rid! say you dont need her any more, she doesnt actually need to know why, say you will try to manage on your own, far less stressful than having that mad woman around. Good Luck

She would drive me crackers!

She should be doing exactly what you want, no more, no less - and as for taking photos
Treating you like a naughty girl whose mum is telling her off for messing up the kitchen after she's cleaned it!!

The clue is in the name - CLEANER
she is there to make your house cleaner, not you uncomfortable.

Try finding a cleaner on streetlife.com - you will then get people who will recommend someone who does their cleaning. I get most of my tradesmen from this site as its local and when the same name comes up again and again you know they will be good. Your cleaner sounds a nightmare and you don't really need the extra hassle. Get rid!

What does AIBU mean, I'm fairly new on here and it takes me ages to decipher what some people are talking about DIL DS DD etc is there a code list somewhere

Are they before and after photos she plans to use to check up on your tidying, rubylady? She sounds more like your mother than your cleaner. You're not one of her teenagers! She comes to clean rather than tidy so I think it's sensible to tidy your things away before she comes to maximise the time she has for cleaning but it's ridiculous of her to expect your house to be as clean as she left it last time! I think she's in the wrong job!

This rang some bells with me. I am disabled and now work from home, I use housework as a workout to try and maintain some fitness and mobility. I have a fitness watch that records it as an activity. The house isn't immaculate, but it's not too bad at all.

Previously I worked out of the house as well as from home and the house was definitely not immaculate!
I have a friend who needed some extra cash some years ago and she offered to come and clean for me. However it soon became clear that she expected me to help her as she cleaned.

She was under great stress herself at the time and was often distracted and unfocused in her work - she used half a bottle of expensive spray cleaner in one session in the bathroom, covering every surface in thick foam and looking at me blankly when I asked her why, then apologising profusely.

Another time she left the bathroom mats in the garden and I only realised after it had rained, they had to be washed and dried by me - extra work, obviously.

She never put anything she cleaned in the kitchen away but left it for me 'as I knew where it went', even though I did show her my cupboard storage systems.

Finally, she refused to clean for me one day because I hadn't cleaned and tidied as I usually did, to make it easier for her to clean and tidy. We agreed that was it as regards her helping me.

We repaired the friendship gradually and are once again good friends, but it took a while.

At this point, I got a professional cleaner in who WAS professional, unlike yours. She and her daughter left my kitchen, hallway and bathroom immaculate in just one hour from whatever states they were in. They were fantastic. When I stopped my work outside the home I could no longer afford them, sadly. They were fine about it, they understood.

My lovely professional cleaner would never have humiliated me by taking before and after photos. She was totally focused and organised in her work, unlike yours.
She told me that she often cleaned houses in far, far worse states than mine. Which was no doubt true.

Let your cleaner go and get a true professional in, one who won't judge you but will help you to live your life as you want to and need to.

I like the sound of your cleaner ! She's confident , seems to think that you need sorting out ( maybe you do ? ! ) must like coming to you and is certainly enthusiastic . It sounds a bit like that Obsessive Cleaners programme ? I would give her another chance and if you still don't like her style , tell her you'll manage fine now thank you . Be nice .

Sounds like a control freak to me ! Taking photographs is not normal cleaner behaviour. You do not need any excuses to fire her. If you don't want to face to face her, text her and tell her that her services are no longer required and you have made alternative arrangements. Get rid !!

My cleaner used to
Clean kitchen cupboard doors , kitchen surfaces and hob (not the oven),windowsills (our kitchen goes into our conservatory)Sweep and mop floor
Clean bathroom ,sink in our bedroom(not shower) ,toilet (own sink) downstairs cloakroom
-in two hours
She then did about one- two hours ironing (two DC s at home ,husbands shirts my smarter work clothes)
I had said at the start I wasn't bothered about hoovering or dusting-DH did both- but she always used to do it (four bed , stairs and landing and ground floor)I think she liked leaving the house looking nice .
If we were away she would do extras like skirting boards and inside windows the second week .
I find the idea of someone else stripping beds bizarre (kids were trained to do their own) Re-making would be ok .I had once left a pile of clean bedding on our bed as had stripped it before going on holiday and she did make it up,bless her
I was out at work most times she came but we were on good terms.DH was working from home when she started .I paid her for four hours so it was up to her how long she took
Worked for me for 11years
Always tidied up before she came and made DC s do same .It was very good discipline !I would never leave paperwork visible to a cleaner either
I think you are being ripped off .
Be very specific about what you want done and ask how long they they think it should take

I too agree she does not seem like the right person for you. I would have sent her packing if she wasn't doing the cleaning I required. As for putting out your new things - if you said you wanted to do it yourself that should have been the end of it.

I have difficulty bending to clean skirting boards etc but am quite capable of unpacking a microwave myself - I have done!!!!

Email is best option to avoid confrontation but don't let her drag you into a row my email. Good luck finding a new cleaner - hope you get a good one

It would be best to be truthful from the start - or at least if you're going to use a little white lie to soften the blow don't tell her you're going to do the cleaning yourself because she will find out when you get a replacement! She sounds a bit odd to me so best be firm from the start, you don't want to say something that'll go legs later on!

Your house, your rules, your money. She's been disrespectful and doesn't deserve the patience you've shown so far.

I agree with the others. This is not the right person. You need someone who will support you and not cause you stress. It sounds as if she is playing power games and it will only get worse if you keep her on.

If it's a private arrangement then just tell/text her to say that you no longer require a cleaner. No need to feel guilty: I'm assuming it's cash in hand and it's unlikely that she has declared herself to HMRC as a self employed person!
If you get someone new, start by giving them a list of what you require doing and ensure that those things are done: you are the one paying for the service.

I go out when my cleaner comes cos I'm not comfy being an " employer". But I got an agency as I know they are vetted as far as trustworthiness. Or best of all is word of mouth.
Don't keep this one! Have a short statement in your mind and tell her either at the end of the next time she comes, or by phone or letter. Keep it short. Eg this well be your last day. I don't need you any more. Don't go into it any further as it will stress you out.

She sounds far too pushy and it's a terrible clash of personalities.
I clean and it takes me 2 hours to do a 2 bed house very thoroughly. Just send her a text and find someone you get on better with. Can you go out in future and leave a list of jobs that the cleaner can get on with until you get home?
Don't feel guilty as it's a business arrangement and sometimes they have to come to an end. As she's pushy and a bit too involved in your life by the sound of it, she might make comments but just imagine the relief of not having to put up with her again!